The Powerpuffs Grow Up
by Animejo
Summary: The Powerpuffs, duh, grow up and head for a higher education . . . AWAY from Townsville! Trad couples
1. And Off They Go!

Just read and review please.  
  
I don't own any familiar characters.  
  
The Powerpuffs Grow Up  
  
Chapter 1: And Off They Go!  
  
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It was another beautiful day in Townsville, but in the Utonium household, the Professor didn't notice.  
  
"Blossom! Buttercup! Bubbles! Are you all packed yet? Your plane leaves in," The harried Professor checked his watch and went wide-eyed, "Yikes! Girls, your plane leaves in twenty minutes! Get down here now! I'll have to break speed limits to get there in time!"  
  
A clatter from the direction of the stairs announced the girls descent. The thumps heard that followed them told the panicking Professor that his children were finally ready.   
  
"Hi, Professor," Blossom said cheerfully, "Sorry we took so long, but Bubbles couldn't find her socks and Buttercup forgot her brush."  
  
"Did not!" Now Buttercup spoke up to defend herself, "I just couldn't remember whether I put it into my suitcase or not!"  
  
"Yeah," piped up Bubbles, "And besides, you forgot to get your carry-on from the bathroom."  
  
"Girls, girls! There's no time to waste. Throw your bags into the car, and let's hit the road!"  
  
Seeing the dark looks on the trios' faces, the Professor said, "Or would you rather walk?"  
  
That doused the tempers instantly and soon the Utonium family was at the Townsville International Airport.   
  
The Professor looked proudly at the Powerpuffs. It had been thirteen years since they were created. Now they were 18 and ready to leave the loving home of their surrogate father, the Professor. He tried not to let his emotions show. Breaking out into tears would only make the girls refuse to leave him and the Professor was wise enough to know that if they didn't leave now, they never would. To stop his train of thought, the Professor hugged each of the girls in turn and waved good-bye to them as they walked down the terminal to board Flight 213.   
  
He stayed there until he saw the plane take off and fly out of sight. Then, sighing, he turned and drove back to his suddenly silent and lonely house.  
  
* * *  
  
Meanwhile, onboard Flight 213, the girls conferred among themselves.  
  
"Strange. Why did the Professor look so sad?" Mused the blonde Bubbles.  
  
An irritated Buttercup bopped Bubbles on the head, "Because we were leaving him, dummy! Were you expecting him to jump for joy?"  
  
Blossom sighed as her two siblings started to argue. She understood exactly why the Professor was sad. It was because she felt the same way. Four years without seeing the Professor or anyone from Townsville again. How will I stand it?  
  
Bubbles stopped fighting with Buttercup to look over at Blossom, worry evident on her adorable face, "What's wrong Blos? Why are you so quiet all of a sudden?"  
  
Buttercup turned to look at both of them, waiting for her redheaded sister to answer Bubbles question.  
  
"Well, I was just wondering . . . what if we fail college? I mean, each of us is going to completely different schools. We'll have no contact for some time." Blossom stared at her hands and whispered, "I don't know . . . how I . . . could stand being . . . alone . . ." Blossom looked up, "I wished you'd understand . . ."   
  
Bubbles hugged her, "Of course we do! Except, we don't regard this as an exile. It's an adventure unto itself!" Here she broke off, dreamy-eyed.  
  
"Yeah," agreed Buttercup. "Imagine it--no more crime fighting, especially after all the badies of Townsville are all too old or just sick and tired of being beaten by us time after time. And think of all the new stuff we'll learn! How can you be sad? I'd expect Bubbles to act like this--not you, the outgoing, ready for everything, unofficial leader of the three of us--Blossom. I mean, you got accepted to the most prestigious university ever, and through a scholarship, nonetheless!!!"  
  
Bubbles, back down to Earth, added, "Be happy Blossom. Think of the positive side of everything. It's not really that easy to enter Stanton University (the equivalent of Yale, Harvard, Stanford, and all those Ivy League schools)! I heard that only the really smart or the really rich are accepted and you are so totally not rich. Isn't it cool that humble you got in for free?!!"  
  
Blossom grinned, her good humor restored, "Thanks guys. You always know how to cheer me up."  
  
  
  
"Hey, what else are sisters for?" cried Bubbles.  
  
"You mean besides bugging you half to death?" muttered Buttercup, but she grinned when Bubbles stuck out her tongue.   
  
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Same old, same old. Thanks for reading!  
  
More to come . . . 


	2. Arrival: University and Dojo

Powerpuff Grow Up!

Standard disclaimers apply--should be quite obvious I don't own any othe recognizable characters.

Chapter 2: Arrival-University and Dojo

Blossom sighed and dropped her suitcase on the floor. After the plane had landed, the three had rented a taxi and toured New Krox. During lunch at a cafe, they decided to get to their respective dorms and schools. They planned to meet in a week at the World Library which was right next to The Ricotta, an Italian cafe.

All the information about her classes and living arrangements had already been mailed to her several weeks ago. Blossom looked around her rooms. It was a double dorm on Stratford grounds. It contained only a medium size bedroom with enough space for a bunk bed, two desks and an electrical outlet. There was one window in the center of the wall next to the bunks. Her room was painted a soft, dusty red. The bunks were supplied with old, rose-hued coverlets. 

For each floor of the dorm building- there were ten in hers- there was an average size community kitchen with a refrigerator, and one bathroom for every three dorm rooms. That would make four bathrooms on a floor. Each room had its own sink and shower stall. I hope my dorm mate is easy to get along with.

Looking out her window, Blossom saw the old, ivy-covered, stone buildings of her home for the next four years. She smiled and was lost in reverie as she dreamed of what she might do on such an illustrious campus.

Bam!

Blossom jumped in shock and almost reached flying height before she caught hold of herself and came back down in gravity's hold like an ordinary person. The person who had flung open the door so hard that it had bounced off the wall on the rebound slowly surveyed the room and its occupant, "Oh, shit. This room is too damn small for one fucking person, and they call this a double!"

Blossom's left hand flew to her mouth, thoroughly shocked. The girl was grinning at her, showing straight, white teeth which shone against her porcelain-clear skin. Her lips were cupid-bowed and the entire doll-like face surrounded by gleaming gold hair. She was short, barely 5 3', but she was built with all the correct attributes and a bit more. Blossom was astonished at how such a delicate looking creature could utter such crass words.

The girl stuck out a hand, "Hey. I'm Loriel Hollindal. Stupid name, but my parents named me after some freaking ancestor or somethin', so call me Lorie, okay?"

Giving herself a mental kick, Blossom shook the offered hand with a smile, "Hello, Lorie. I'm Blossom Utonium. You can take your pick of the bunks, I don't really care."

Lorie grinned, "Sweet! I want the top one!"

Blossom had to duck when Lorie's sticker-covered suitcase flew past her on its way to the upper bed. Lorie had disappeared back out the door, leaving Blossom standing in the middle of the small room, wondering how much more luggage such a small girl could have.

Buttercup tried not to be nervous as she stood in front of the imposing iron gates that led to the Yaminagi Dojo. Stone walls that stood higher then her surrounded the estate, making it impossible for her to see the interior. Taking a deep breath, Buttercup walked closer to the gate and pressed the doorbell. It was a charming little button that some smith had cast to resemble a sun with a face.

Soon, she could hear hurried footsteps. Patiently, she waited. In due time, a red-faced young man punched in the code and the iron gates opened. Seeing how unfit he was, Buttercup asked bluntly, "Are you a student?"

The teen grinned and ran a quick hand through his thatch of curly orange hair, "Does it show that much?"

Buttercup shrugged.

The boy slapped his forehead. "Where are my manners?" He stuck out his hand and pasted a solemn expression on his face, "Konnichiwa, and welcome to the Yaminagi Dojo of New Krox. I am Gerald Keller. How do you do?"

Buttercup politely shook his hand, "Buttercup Utonium." She raised an inquiring eyebrow, "You speak Japanese?"

Sheepishly, Gerald shook his head, "No, it's only a couple of common phrases I picked up from the teachers and students who do speak it. I'm actually here as a clerk to help with all the paperwork."

That made sense. Buttercup nodded. "Okay, Gerald. So where will I be staying?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Follow me." He looked apologetic at her as they strolled down the asphalt driveway, "Sorry if I made you wait, but I'm a bit of a scatter-brain." He looked at the heavy looking bags Buttercup was holding. "I'd offer to carry one of those for you, but I'm afraid my body isn't up to it."

Buttercup grinned at him, "That's okay, I could carry 'em myself." She glanced at the distant dojo. "Can you tell me more about this school?"

Gerald lit up. Apparently, this was something he liked and was good at. "Let's see . . ." His voice took on a type of lecturing tone, as if he did it often. "Founded in the early 1900s, The Yaminagi Dojo was among the first three to set up shop in New Krox, which was just Krox back then. The other two schools of the martial arts are The Daidouka Dojo and The Kimakio Dojo. All three have been serious competitors in international fighting contests and conventions. Currently, The Kimakio Dojo is the top dog, but Daidouka is rumored to have high hopes on a new student-prodigy.

"Of the three Kimakio is also the largest and most well-appointed, but I am proud to say The Yaminagi Dojo is the most open-minded. We teach not only hand-to-hand combat, but specialize in weaponry as well--traditional Japanese ones such as Kendo. The Daidouka has in its prestigious libraries, ancient techniques that are extremely rare and unique."

"Huh." Despite herself, Buttercup was impressed.

Gerald looked earnestly at her, "There's a few more things you need to know about what you're going into. I've been here for three years, so I think I know the ropes."

Buttercup was relieved, "Good. All right, I'm listening. Shoot."

Gerald himself was happy that the Powerpuff did not take offense when he offered advice. "One really important thing is the form of address. For teachers, always attach a sensei or sama or san at the end of their name, and only call them by their last name." He thought for a moment. "Unless some of them like Yoshiko-san says you can use their first. The students usually don't care, but on the safe side, call all the ones who are older upperclassman. Some of the no-talent hacks have a lot of money and are really rank-happy."

Buttercup wasn't surprise. An awful lot of egotistic villains back home were like that.

Gerald was still talking, "If you like the end name sort of thing, close friends are chan- that applies to both female and male. Kun, on the other hand is reserved for males only. Usually, only the genuine Japanese students do that." They were fast approaching the Japanese style school and Gerald was speeding up as well. Buttercup wondered where he got all the air. "Address all adults by san and the owner of the school by sama, you hear? Watasi-sama is a real stickler for manners.

"Days are split into thirds. One third for the fighting, one third for book work, and the last third is extra studying, free time, or chores, depending on your behavior and your teachers. No indecisiveness, must know exactly what your courses you will pursue."

They were now at the front doors.

"One last word before you go on in to Hikaru. She's the receptionist and has the sharpest tongue I know of. She's also one of the really good Japanese speakers and has been here since she was five. If you need any help, ask her. She has a soft spot for newbies like you. Have a good day!"

"Thanks!" Buttercup yelled as the easy-going young man jogged away. Gerald waved good-bye to her as he went.

Taking a deep, calming breath, Buttercup pushed open the glass doors. The fragile entranceway opened to a tiled lobby that screamed "SOPHISTICATION" and backed it up with lots of stainless steel. Instead of the cutting edge, contemporary art that Buttercup liked to see, the marble walls were hung with scrolls covered with calligraphy and mountain scapes of plain, dark, inks. Buttercup took this in passing as she walked as steadily as she could toward the polished granite of the reception desk. A girl with short, professionally cut, black hair was talking on a phone and scribbling something down at the same time was sitting behind it. A nametag pinned to her pale red business suit proclaimed her a honorable employee of the Yaminagi Dojo. Beneath the black words, someone had carelessly scrawled "Fouri, Hikaru" with a dark purple marker in the white space provided.

Putting her bags down, Buttercup waited impatiently for the woman to finish her conversation. Though it was interesting to hear an exchange of words in the rapid-fire language of the Japanese, it gets boring if understanding doesn't come with it. Finally, the girl chanced to look up from her furious scribbling and hastily finished the call. Placing the phone in its cradle, the receptionist smiled at Buttercup, "Hello. Forgive me if I had not noticed you before. How may I help you?"

"S'okay. Name's Buttercup Utonium. I'm enrolling?"

Hikaru opened a drawer and took out a thick file. Flipping through it she slid her finger down the names. "Ah, yes. Number 54789301 from Townsville. Welcome to the big city."

Remembering their trip the Citysville when the Professor had gotten a new job and the bridge incident, Buttercup sincerely hoped that the Dojo didn't have perfect records of their past as the Powerpuff Girls. Hikaru had flicked on a computer and was running down a list of things. For awhile, the room was silent except for clicking of the keyboard and the mouse. When the printer buzzed and started to spit out sheets of type covered paper, Buttercup almost jumped in surprise.

Taking up the stack, Hikaru reached under her desk and placed an "I will be back in a few minutes" sign on the countertop. "Follow me please. I will take you around the dojo so you'll know enough to find your way."

As they passed door after door, Hikaru named them so quickly, Buttercup wasn't sure whether she had heard correctly. "Er . . . The dying room?"

Startled, Hikaru looked at her. Then she laughed, "I'm sorry, was I talking too fast?"

Buttercup nodded, trying to not feel embarrassed, "I'm afraid so."

"Sorry, it's just that Japanese was my first language and because of that, I seem to speak English quickly. Here, since I don't seem to be helping you much, this'll keep you up to date on your location. And that was the formal dining room." She handed Buttercup and map. As Buttercup oriented the map and herself, she shuffled through the stack of papers until she found the one she was looking for. "Ah ha!"

Buttercup looked askance at her. Hikaru ignored it and waved the paper under her nose, "This is you schedule, okay? I'll take you to your room and let you dump everything down. Then I'll show you your first class, which is . . ." She peered at the piece of paper, "Well, I feel for you- You have Yaziko-sensei for your basic body work."

Buttercup was puzzled, "Basic . . . Body work . . . ?"

Hikaru grinned at her, "It doesn't matter if you had been training since birth, everyone goes through Basic with Yaziko-sensei or Utaki-san." Her eyes took on a slightly starry look, "Oh, Utaki-san . . ."

Buttercup politely looked away- she was used to this. Back home, Bubbles was usually gushing over one boy or the other and even the intelligent Blossom had the occasional crush. Buttercup sometimes wondered why she, herself, never felt the slightest thing toward members of the opposite sex other than friendship at the most. It was a little discomforting, though, to see a woman of Hikaru's apparent self-control show such blatant emotion.

Hikaru seemed to come back down to Earth after a while, but she seemed to be a bit dazed as she led Buttercup to a door that looked like identical to all the others she had just past. "This is Watasi-sama's office. He's the current owner of the school. He'll take over from now." The receptionist walked off in a stupor, leaving Buttercup to stare at the ominously white door. Taking a deep breath, Buttercup reached for the dull, bronze knob and turned it.

Sorry about the year-long lag, but junior year was the worst!

Review, if you can be so kind. 


	3. Private School and a RowdyRuff

Powerpuffs Grow Up

I don't own anything familar.

Chapter 3: Private School and a Rowdyruff

Bubbles squealed excitedly as she stood at the gated entrance of Paladin Academy. The elegant ironwork was twisted into the school insignia of a rearing horse with an armored knight on its back. The knight was holding a lance which was pointed toward the lower left corner and had pierced through a wrought-iron rose in full bloom. Still full of adrenaline from the rush of foreignness that permeated the whole city of New Krox, Bubbles pulled out a map, one that had been looked at so often, it could be torn at the creases with the slightest pressure.

A bit nervously, Bubbles smoothed the skirt of her uniform over her thighs and adjusted the blue blazer. She had never worn a uniform before besides her customary childhood dress of blue and black stripes, white knee socks, and black Mary Janes. "Lets see . . . Administration, room 540 . . . Next to the fountain of Ferlon Myers--first mayor of New Krox."

The blonde girl scanned the wide, sweeping lawns of her new school, "Ah, ha! It's that-a-way!"

A bell rang somewhere on the school grounds--not the annoying noise caused by the electronic ones, but one caused by the ringing of one made of true metal. Bubbles wondered how large the bell must be to cause such a rich sound and how many bell-ringers it took to ring it. She was distracted, however, by the approach of several other girls wearing the same uniform as hers.

One of them, a whip-thin girl with the longest brown hair Bubbles had ever seen waved to her. "Hi, you must be new here!"

Bubbles nodded, feeling that the amber-eyed girl had good intentions, "Yeah, today's going to be my first here."

The other girl shook her mop of thick red hair out of her face, "Hi. I'm Kira and that's Breanna. This is our first year too, but we both have sibs that have been here before, so we're not totally lost."

Breanna smiled widely, showing slightly crooked, white teeth, "Don't listen to Mophead. She's been here for two years already!"

Kira winced and jabbed an elbow into Breanna's side, "Don't call me Mophead. What's your name?"

"Whoops," Bubbles blushed at her forgetfulness. "I'm Bubbles, nice to meetcha!"

Breanna, who had ignored Kira's elbow, continued to grin, "Well, Bubbles, Kira--don't look now, but the cutest guy on campus is here."

Kira spun around so quickly, her curly red hair briefly formed a halo around her head before settling back down, "Ohhhh, it's Him!"

Bubbles felt all the blood drain out of her face at the last word Kira had said, but then returned to her normal pallor when she remembered that Him was down in Heck, training a successor. He was out of her hair for the time being--so who was important enough to deserve such an emphasis on the mere mention of his presence? Kira was staring off in the distance, almost drooling and Breanna was watching her with mild amusement. Bubbles followed Kira's intense stare.

"Boomer!"

The blonde boy turned, revealing the more matured face of the Boomer she had known thirteen years ago. Surprise was written all over his face, "Who?"

"What are you doing here? Where's your psycho brothers? You'd better not mmphh!" Bubbles shot a glare at Kira, who had her hand clamped firmly over her mouth.

The redhead grinned sheepishly at the handsome boy, "Sorry about that Brian. I don't know what got into Bubbles."

The blue-eyed boy grinned and shook his head, which made Kira's knees go weak with adoration, "It's okay, Kira. Bubbles you say? Bubbles Utonium?"

Bubbles took advantage of Kira's moment of weakness and lightly bit her hand. With a startled exclamation, Kira let go of the littlest Powerpuff. Bubbles glared at her former adversary, "Brian! Don't make me puke. I still recognize you after all these years and I know you're Boomer!" Her high, vehement voice went into unknown octaves as she got more and more frustrated.

Brian guiltily laughed, "Uh, yeah. But that was only my childhood nickname."

Bubbles stared at him, aghast. "You . . . changed your . . . name?"

Brian-formerly-known-as-Boomer looked like he really didn't want to talk about it, but Bubbles persisted, "How did you get back! We defeated you already! And how come you aged as well, huh? Don't tell me some mad scientist or weirdo remade you!"

Breanna and Kira were flabbergasted by Bubbles reaction. Boomer smiled at them, "It was nice seeing you two again, now if you'll be so kind as to excuse me . . ." Grabbing the protesting Bubbles by the arm, he walked away with her in tow.

When they were out of the two girls' sight, Boomer turned around, "Okay, Bu--" He barely dodged the eyebeams in time. "Whoa! Bubbles, calm down! I'm not--"

"Yeah, you're not what! Don't give me that excuse! I'm sick and tired of fighting all you bad guys!" The blond girl's eyes glowed as dangerous red as she prepared another blast.

Moving quickly as he could, Boomer caught Bubbles in a vise-like hug from behind.

The Powerpuff was indignant, "Let me go!"

"Won't. Not until you promise to stop attacking me." The young man was adamant and after several minutes of unsuccessful argument, Bubbles reluctantly promised.

"All right, all right! Now let go of me!"

Boomer released her and then backed up a few paces, still wary of the petite girl. Bubbles placed her hands on her hips, indignant, "Explain to me right now WHAT you are doing HERE with a completely different name!" Her voice soared several octaves, causing the Rowdyruff to temporarily go deaf.

"Look Bubbles, we changed when we came back. Me and my brothers don't want anything else but live a normal life."

"Brick and Butch are here too!"

Boomer raised his hands complacently, "Yes, they are. But Brick changed his name to be less conspicuous. Butch's name was pretty well used already and he would never have changed it anyway--"

"Look Boomer, Brian, Whatever," Bubbles cut him off. "I don't care whether you guys changed your names or not--how did you get back?"

"Well, we didn't really die from something as weak as a kiss, even at that age and circumstances." He smiled when Bubbles blushed. "We were only teleported overseas to here."

Curiosity overcame her reservations and Bubbles asked, "How did three five-year-olds survive in such a large city?"

"We were lucky. A policeman found us and took us to the nearest orphanage and after a year or so, the Silva family adopted us."

"All three of you!"

"Yes." Boomer nodded.

"Well, you guys were lucky." She hesitated. "So . . . So you won't be our enemies anymore?"

"No, we don't. I spent fifteen years living with a real family. Do you think I haven't changed from that? I'm not willing to give them up for anything!"

Boomer's passionate, if short, speech had moved Bubbles tender heart to forgiveness. Smiling brightly, her usual cheer back in place, she grabbed the startled boy's hand and shook it energetically, "That's great! Now that that's all over with, how long have you been attending this school? How are your brothers? Are there any monsters here?"

Boomer looked a bit taken aback by Bubbles sudden change of attitude, but took it in stride and started to answer her rain of questions, one by one. It was, he felt, going to be a long day.

Review, please. 


	4. Leaders, Unite!

Powerpuffs Grow Up! 

I don't own the PPGs or anything related.

Chapter 4: Leaders, Unite!

Blossom stood in line at the cafeteria, scanning the menus for something that would tempt her meager appetite. She was homesick, even with Lori's vivacious company. Bubbles and Buttercups' schools were too far away and she had too much work to do to visit them. A few calls with the Professor had alleviated some of her loneliness, but enough remained to make her feel out of place. All the students around her were muttering about their work and the professors, but it was all good natured banter. Every single one of them seemed glad to be where they were.

"Hello! Would you like to order anything? The soup of the day is the chief's special homemade chicken soup and the chicken enchiladas are his specialty!" The cashier said brightly.

Blossom tried to be depressed by the heavy dose of happiness. "Just the soup and a salad, please." Hopefully, the soup would make her feel less a stranger in this place.

Sitting down in one of the unoccupied tables, Blossom wished Lori was with her. The girl was so different from what Blossom was used to; she always managed to banish some of Blossom's loneliness. Tasting a spoonful of the chicken soup, Blossom almost cried. Instead of easing her homesickness, the dish's foreign spices only reminded her of the way the Professor always made it--with a dash of paprika.

The hand not holding the soup spoon clenched in lap. Silently, Blossom willed the tears in her eyes back, it would not do to loose control in such a public place. Her reverie was interrupted by a warm, male voice that sounded vaguely familiar. "Excuse me, but is this seat taken?" Remembrance came rushing back and Blossom look up to stare into the crimson eyes of Brick, leader of the Rowdyruff boys.

Brick felt the bottom of his stomach drop as he stared into the totally unexpected sight of his old adversary's familiar scarlet eyes, "Blossom?" Disbelief saturated the single word.

The unofficial leader of the Powerpuff girls hide her shock behind a polite mask of indifference, "Brick. I trust you are well and not up to no good? A fight in here would be distasteful and inconvenient."

"Um, no." Brick sat down across from her, taking the time to recover from his confusion. Had those been tears he had seen in her brilliant eyes? "Are you a student here?"

"Yes." The single word held all the warmth of an ice cube. Clearly, Blossom remembered how hard the battle with them had been and was not happy to see him again.

"How has university life been for you?" Brick was shocked for a second when Blossom's mask cracked and her face crumpled. She quickly regained her composure, but he had already seen through her facade. Wisely, he did not pursue the subject. "No, I do not intend any harm for those who do not deserve it."

" 'For those who do not deserve it' ?" Blossom echoed his words, "And what could you mean by that?"

"Don't get me wrong. I will not stand by if some wrong is being committed."

Blossom's lips twitched in a tiny smile, "Ah, a vigilante. How charming."

Brick returned the smile with a fuller one, "Isn't that what you were at the time you fought against us and all those other bad boys in Townsville?"

The red-haired girl smiled ruefully, "Yes. I guess I shouldn't be one to talk, hm?"

"Yes." The two shared a moment of laughter.

After it, Brick reflected, "Isn't it strange?"

Blossom echoed his thoughts, "Yes, it is. How enemies can put aside their rivalries after so much time had passed. . ." She shook her head of long, lustrous, red hair. "It baffles the mind, doesn't it?"

Brick took a bite of his turkey sandwich, "So, do you still call yourself Blossom?"

The girl seemed surprised that he would even ask such a question, "Of course! It's my given name! What else would it be?"

Brick shrugged, "Dunno. It's just that--"

"Benny!" A whirlwind of motion later and a beautiful girl with hair to rival both Bubbles and Lori's plunked herself next to Brick. Flipping her glorious red-gold hair over her shoulder, she grabbed Brick's half eaten sandwich and took a bite. Swallowing, she quickly kissed Brick on the mouth before turning back to face Blossom. "Hi. I'm Salina. Who are you?"

Brick quickly made the introductions, "Salina, this is my childhood acquaintance, Blossom. Blossom, meet my girlfriend."

Blossom's smile was a bit strained as she said, "Hello. Nice to meet you." She was hardly ready to deal a complete stranger right after meeting a childhood archenemy. Blossom felt the bile raise at the back of her throat. Quickly, before it could go any further, she blurted out, "I'm really sorry that I have to cut out meeting short Salina, Benny, but I have to bee somewhere in a couple of minutes! I hope we'll meet in better circumstances next time, Benny."

As she stood up, Salina's hand shot out and grasped her by the wrist, interrupting Blossom's dash for the bathroom. "Hold on a sec, Blossom," her eyes glittered strangely under the cafeteria's artificial lights. "I'm the only one who could call Benjamin Benny!"

Blossom glanced at Brick, wishing she could realize that she had not realized that wasn't his new name without giving away the fact that they were childhood enemies rather than friends. Brick just raised an eyebrow and shrugged it off.

Remembering that Brick was still there, Salina lowered her voice and leaned closer to the sicken-looking Blossom. "You keep your hands off my man, you harlot! The fact that you were both childhood friends won't matter a bit if you intrude on my territory." She released her hold on Blossom's wrist.

Blossom stumbled a bit as she backed away from Salina, stunned by the vicious words. The urge to vomit strengthened, and she cast one more look at the smiling Salina before hurrying to the bathroom.

She didn't make it. Since the bathroom was out of reach, Blossom ducked into one of the densely treed areas of the campus's numerous parks and promptly emptied her stomach. Footsteps came near and a familiar voice called out, "Hey, you okay over there?" Lorie walked out of the surrounding greenery, a heavy backpack slung over one shoulder. She seemed surprised to see Blossom there, but it changed to concern when she realized what Blossom was doing, "Shit! Blossom, why didn't you damn well tell me if you weren't feeling fucking right!"

Blossom groaned from her slumped over position on the grassy ground, "It only just started Lorie. I couldn't help it and I couldn't stop it."

"Yeah, well, whatever." Lorie knelt down and helped Blossom up by pulling one of her slack arms around her neck. "Now where's the freaking nurse's office?"

"Lorie . . . don't you have class . . .?" Blossom weakly tried to protest.

"Don't sweat it, girl. My parents are too damn rich anyway, I could skip one or two classes."

"All right." Blossom knew she was in no position to argue. "It's over near the Kerilane Hall."

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